Single-family detached homes give boost to Fraser Valley sales

By Steve Randall | this page was last updated on the 06 Jun 2019Font size :

There was a slight rise in home sales in the Fraser Valley in May but sales remain 18% below the 10-year average.

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board reported a 9.7% month-over-month increase (13.7% year-over-year decrease) to 1,517 sales, driven by the single-family detached sector which took a 41.2% share of the market, up from 39.4% in April.

“Buyers are recognizing that in the last three months, home prices have stopped declining and that in order to take advantage of the improvement in prices over the past year, now is a great time to consider making the purchase they held off on in the previous months,” said Darin Germyn, president of the board. “We’re seeing buyers who have been waiting on the sidelines, act, because of better price opportunities and more selection. It’s been four years since buyers had this much choice in the Fraser Valley.”

Active listings were up 26.3% year-over-year to 8,506 with 3,542 new listings during the month, a 10.7% decrease year-over-year but up 4.5% from April 2019.

Prices hold steady

HPI Benchmark Price activity for the Fraser Valley in May was:

Single Family Detached: At $964,200, the Benchmark price for a single family detached home remained unchanged compared to April 2019 and decreased 5.9% compared to May 2018.

Townhomes: At $522,500, the Benchmark price for a townhome increased 0.1% compared to April 2019 and decreased 5.9% compared to May 2018.

Apartments: At $416,800, the Benchmark price for apartments/condos decreased 0.9% compared to April 2019 and decreased 8% compared to May 2018.

“Key to this market is pricing,” continued Germyn. “We empathize with our clients on the challenges they face today to qualify to buy a home and we work with them to find the right property at a realistic price they can afford.”

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